Donald Roebling Estate

File:NIK 0353.jpg

{{short description|Historic residential estate in Clearwater, within Pinellas County, FL}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2017}}

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Donald Roebling Estate

| image = Clearwater Roebling Estate01.jpg

| caption = Spottiswoode residence facade

| location = Clearwater,
Pinellas County, Florida

| coordinates = {{coord|27|57|27|N|82|48|17|W|display=inline,title}}

| locmapin = Florida#USA

| refnum = 79000689{{NRISref|version=2010a}}

| area =

| architecture = Tudor Revival

| architect = John Phillipoff &
Roy W. Wakeling

| built = 1929

| added = December 19, 1979

| visitation_num =

| visitation_year =

}}

The Donald Roebling Estate, also known as Spottiswoode and Spotswood, is a historic residential estate in Clearwater, within Pinellas County on the West coast of Florida.

History

It was the home of inventor, engineer, industrial designer, and philanthropist Donald Roebling (1908–1959). It is located on the channel at 700 Spottiswoode Lane in Clearwater. Roebling bought and named the parcel of land Spottiswoode, in honor of his fiancée, Florence Spotswood Parker.{{Cite web |title=FamilySearch.org |url=https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LRNV-TY9/florence-spotswood-parker-1908-1977 |access-date=2024-12-06 |website=ancestors.familysearch.org}}

Donald Roebling was the great-grandson of John Augustus Roebling who designed the Brooklyn Bridge, and grandson of Washington Roebling who was in charge of the bridge's construction.

The buildings were designed in the Tudor Revival style by architects Roy W. Wakeling and John Phillipoff, and the residence was completed in 1929. The estate includes the mansion, a boathouse on the Intracoastal Waterway, an 'engineering−inventions' machine shop, and other outbuildings.

=Harbor Oaks=

The estate was built in the Harbor Oaks Residential District, Clearwater's first planned residential development, that was opened in 1914 by Dean Alvord, a major developer from New York.[http://apps.flheritage.com/markers/markerDetail.cfm?id=478&keyword=Roebling&city=Clearwater&county=Pinellas Florida Historical Markers Programs: Harbor Oaks Historic District, Clearwater, Pinellas County, Florida] The development offered then-innovative features such as paved streets, curbs, and sidewalks, underground utility and sewer systems, and tree lined parkways. Other original Harbor Oaks residents included author Rex Beach, Brooklyn Dodgers owner Charles Ebbett, industrialist Robert Ingersoll, and members of the Studebaker, Proctor, and Gamble families.

=Landmark=

On December 19, 1979, the Donald Roebling Estate was added to the US National Register of Historic Places.

The estate is also protected within the Harbor Oaks Historic District.

References

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Gallery

Image:Clearwater Roebling Estate03.jpg|Spottiswoode residence and garden.

Image:Clearwater Roebling Estate02.jpg|Tudor Revival brick facade and window details

Image:Clearwater Roebling Estate fence01.jpg|Stone garden wall along sidewalk.